Poxel takes first step in recovery plan with €5 million equity line

Poxel has now taken a first concrete step under that plan, announcing the implementation of an equity line with IRIS Capital to provide additional liquidity. The update was followed by a sharp rise in the company’s share price over the past few days, although the stock remains far below where it traded before its difficulties. 

What Poxel was building and why it hit the wall

Poxel has positioned itself as a metabolic-disease biotech, with its most tangible success coming from type 2 diabetes. Its lead asset, imeglimin, reached the market in Japan as TWYMEEG, launched by partner Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma after securing Japanese approval in 2021. By 2025, the company was still reporting that its revenue was mainly coming from TWYMEEG royalties in Japan.

Alongside diabetes, Poxel also tried to build a second growth leg in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). The company advanced PXL065, a deuterium-stabilised version of R-pioglitazone, an isotope chemistry modification intended to reduce the formation of unwanted metabolites while preserving the drug’s activity. The company reported positive phase 2 results in 2023, while also developing its AMPK activator PXL770 for rare metabolic indications, which targets an enzyme that helps cells regulate energy use and metabolic balance. But moving from encouraging mid-stage data to a late-stage path typically requires either deep pockets or a strong partner, and Poxel had neither.

As capital markets tightened and partnership timelines stretched, Poxel’s ability to fund the next steps narrowed quickly. By mid-2025, it was reporting a low cash position and was negotiating with creditors, which ultimately led the company to file for reorganisation proceedings in Lyon.

In other words, the issue was not a swing and miss in the clinic or any other bump on the road, but more of a structural problem. The company was anchored in metabolic disease and pushing multiple programs while relying at the same time on a single product and external partners in a tougher funding environment. 

Recovery plan and strategy

Under the court-approved plan, Poxel’s strategy is explicitly centred on business development rather than late-stage internal expansion. The company listed three priorities in its press release following the approval of its plan.

The company is looking for new partnerships to commercialise imeglimin in Asia, with a particular focus on China and other territories that would not require additional clinical studies. This is straightforward, as imeglimin is already approved and marketed in Japan, extending its geographic reach through partners would allow Poxel to pursue new markets without funding new trials.

Poxel also said it wanted to promote PXL770 in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), a genetic condition in which fluid-filled cysts gradually form in the kidneys, often leading to loss of kidney function over time. The program has generated preclinical data showing reduced cyst formation and improved kidney parameters in disease models, and the company said it was phase-2-ready at the time.

Finally, rather than pushing PXL065 further in MASH, the company is reframing it as a potential opportunity in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), where metabolic dysfunction is increasingly recognised as part of disease progression.

These priorities also come with measures to cut costs. Poxel plans further headcount reductions, increased reliance on third-party resources, and cuts to administrative and audit costs. Central functions are expected to be externalised where possible, with the stated aim of keeping the organisation small enough to operate within a constrained financing horizon.

On the financial side

Debt held by creditors is to be partly converted into equity, while other claims are to be settled according to an agreed repayment schedule. The plan relies on a mix of debt-for-equity conversions, bond issuances, warrants, and staged capital increases, all of which spread dilution over time.

The most visible execution step so far was announced today: the implementation of a €5 million equity line with IRIS Capital, structured over five years. This allows IRIS to subscribe for new shares in quarterly tranches, at its discretion, at a price linked to recent market levels and subject to a discount.

This gives Poxel access to liquidity on demand, instead of an immediate cash injection. It can draw on the facility to fund operations or transactions as needed, but the full €5 million is not guaranteed, and each cash withdrawal comes with dilution. The equity line is a tool to buy time and flexibility, allowing Poxel to pursue partnerships and manage its obligations while avoiding an immediate cash cliff.

Shares in Poxel have rebounded sharply in the days following the approval of the plan, with a 47% jump over the last five days. However, the company is still trading at penny-stock levels, well below where it stood before the restructuring process began, with a current stock value of around €0.35 per share on Euronext.